US Hispanic Use of Telecom Services

2004-2009

This market report takes a close look at the purchase habits and telecom usage patterns of the burgeoning Hispanic segment of the US population. In the last census, Hispanics surpassed the African-American population as the largest minority group in the US, catching much of corporate America off guard. Throughout the 1990s, Hispanics solidified their position as the largest minority in states such as California, Texas, New York, Florida, and New Jersey. Hispanic populations are now appearing in significant numbers in states that have not previously exhibited large ethnic enclavesGeorgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee.

This geographic shift means that telecom marketing executives can no longer target a few key states to capitalize on all Hispanic market opportunities. US Hispanics are heavy users of beepers and pagers, local, long-distance, and international calls, and spend considerably more than the general market on value-added services such as call waiting and caller ID. Prepaid services have also experienced explosive growth in the US Hispanic market.

In this report, Insight examines spending by US Hispanics on local, long distance, ISP, wireless and pre-paid service, and compares these spending patterns to the general population and to other minority segments including Asian Americans and African Americans.

One out of every three dollars spent on
telecommunications services in 2009 will come from US ethic communities, so
the spending power of the Hispanic American, African American, and Asian
American communities will become crucial to the survival of
telecommunications providers over the next five years.

As of July 1, 2003 the total US population was
estimated at 290.8 million. US Hispanics accounted for 40.5 million (with
an additional 3.9 million in Puerto Rico), African Americans 34.7 million,
and the Asian American population reached 12.2 million. Today, nearly one
in three Americans (31.4 percent) belongs to one of these three major
minority segments.

The US Latino community is growing so much and at such
a rapid pace that Hispanics are no longer just the fastest growing
minoritythey are the fastest growing sector in the entire US population.

Hispanics represent a red hot demographic for many companies, a fact well
understood by the telcos, who have historically led in advertising to the
Hispanic market. Between 1990 and 2003, the Hispanic market has grown...